Links

I don’t use Internet Explorer because I run on Mac and Windows, and there is no IE for Mac.

Issues with Safari:

Safari isn’t available on Windows. (Not a current version.)

I used to avoid Safari because it didn’t pin tabs. Safari now pins tabs. It sometimes does not load favicons on these tabs which Chrome does.

When you open more tabs than fits well on your screen, Safari handles it poorly.

Safari Problem: LastPass export doesn’t work in Safari (Sept 1, 2017). It silently fails after re-entering my password to enale export. No prompt for export filename or download-starting message. It doesn’t work in Firefox either. Right now, the only way I can export LastPass is via Chrome. I’ve quit using LastPass, so this is no longer an issue.

I used to use Chrome instead of Firefox because the Chrome edition of AdBlock was better, but that’s no longer the case.

Firefox Advantages:

TiddlyFox. (Although this extension will die when Firefox upates to its new extension model.)

Issues with Chrome:

May 2018: I picked up some kind of Chrome malware. Whenever I went to msn.com, I got redirected to a cheesy site. This persisted when I launched Chrome with extensions disabled. It persisted through a Chrome remove+reinstall. To cure it, I had to remove Chrome, and search my home folder for everything with “Chrome” in the name, and remove all files truly related to Chrome.

Chrome’s extension ecosystem is a break-in waiting to happen. There have been cases where a Chrome extension developer lost control of his account and a bad guy pushed an unauthorized update to an extension. Every extension in Chrome means I have to trust its developer’s staff not to be tricked by phishing. Every extension on any browser weakens the browser’s security by adding any of the extension’s vulnerabilities to the browser footprint. Malware authors are now targeting extension vulnerabilities.

Chrome now prevents blocking of HTML5 video auto-play. There is an extension called Disable HTML5 Autoplay, but it doesn’t block sites such as https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2017/07/11/majority-republicans-say-colleges-have-negative-impact-country-poll-says/468869001/.

LastPass export doesn’t work in Safari or Firefox. Right now, Chrome is the only way I can export/back-up my critical Lastpass data.

Right now Chrome is the dominant browser. This means most sites will test with Chrome.

Extension List:

Adblock: I used to really value AdBlock (the getadblock.com one). I now get so much “we won’t show you content because you are blocking ads” that it is almost worthless.

Lastpass: I really need a password manager. I need to be able to share passwords with my wife and I need to share between PC, Mac, and Android. Do I need it to be integrated into my browser?

Authy: I need Authy. Do I need it integrated into my browser?

Session Buddy: I need bullet-proof session restore.

Stop Video/Animation: I don’t want movies to auto-play. I need them to be quiet if I can’t block them.

Amazon Wish List: Handy to be able to add non-Amazon stuff to my wishlist, but hardly indispensable.

Copy All URLS: Handy. It is really slow if I have to copy 99 URLs, one at a time.

Pushbullet. Handy. I can live without it, if doing so increases my security.

Stylish. Ow. I really like to restyle some sites, but Stylish has had some significant vulnerabilities.